Saturday, 21 May 2016

Qatar seeks 100K Cambodian workers

Manekseka Sangkum:

It's not unusual for some of the world's most notorious states in areas of human rights, cheap non-unionised labour and land shortage etc. to come to Cambodia looking to fulfil their needs because by and large the CPP regime gives little thought to granting their wishes, whatever the social impacts and repercussions of doing so. Just look at the ELC phenomenon and the hundreds of thousands of Cambodians dispatched abroad as migrant labourers over recent years.

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Ith Sam Heng (right) talks with Saleh Saeed Al-Shawi yesterday at the Ministry of Labour in Phnom Penh during a meeting to discuss the recruitment of migrant workers. Photo supplied

Qatar seeks 100K Cambodian workers

Fri, 20 May 2016 ppp

Kong Meta and Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon

A Qatari envoy yesterday told Labour Minister Ith Sam Heng that the Gulf state was interested in receiving as many as 100,000 Cambodian workers. This interest has rekindled concerns for would-be migrants’ well-being among labour rights advocates, despite the envoy’s assurances they would be well looked after.

Saleh Saeed Al-Shawi, director of the Department of Legal Affairs at the Qatari Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, said in the meeting yesterday that for Cambodians to work in the emirate a plan should be created that includes a “protection mechanism” for migrant workers.

“Our labour minister told us that we can receive 33,000 Cambodian workers” immediately, Al-Shawi said, adding that he will share a list of Cambodian recruitment agencies with their Qatari counterparts.

“I hope we will form a committee [of Cambodian dignitaries] to travel to Qatar to see the development of the country and how we control the workers and protect migrant workers’ rights,” he said.

According to Al-Shawi, Qatari law requires employers to create bank accounts for workers to receive their salaries – “if they don’t obey, they will be punished”. Employers will also be responsible for covering round-trip airfare, he continued, adding that although there is no minimum wage regulation, “Qatar is the best country for wages”.

Labour Minister Sam Heng thanked Qatar for the “initiative” and legal protections offered, adding, however, “I think we have much work to do for worker protection and safety.”

“I want to know about the minimum wage in your country,” Heng added.

Spokesmen for the Cambodian and Qatari ministries of labour could not be reached for comment yesterday.

Moeun Tola, director of the labour rights group Central, said yesterday that he didn’t object to the government’s desire to send workers abroad but cautioned, “we need to make sure the legal system protects worker’s rights”.

Tola also wondered what recourse workers might have given the absence of a Cambodian embassy in Qatar.

“What happens if our migrant workers get abused? Who should they get help from?” he asked.

“Qatar has a bad historical record of human rights abuse . . . I think they need workers to construct the stadiums for the World Cup.”

Since the peninsular state won the bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup it has come under international scrutiny for its labour conditions, and an Amnesty International report in March revealed mistreatment at the construction site of one Qatari stadium. In April FIFA reportedly promised to create a panel to ensure decent working conditions in the emirate.

Despite reforms in 2015 to the country’s kafala sponsorship system, workers are still required to obtain permission from employers to change jobs or leave Qatar, preventing workers from escaping abusive situations, according to rights monitors.

Phil Robertson, deputy director for Human Rights Watch’s Asia division, said in an email that “Cambodian workers should not believe Qatar’s siren song of lucrative wages without exploitation”.

“Workers will leave their homes with huge debt burdens owed to Cambodian brokers, and arrive in Qatar with no freedom to escape from abusive employers.

“This is a recipe for rights abuse and a failed migration experience,” he said.

A report by the Gulf Center for Human Rights released in March said the 2015 labour reforms do not extend to domestic workers, such as maids.

What’s more, due to Qatari laws, “there are no civil society organisations working publicly to challenge the state on its handling of migrant welfare”, according to GCHR.

Ultimately, Tola said, the government should instead focus on creating opportunities for skilled labour domestically rather than risking abuses abroad.

“When [migrant workers] go work abroad they go and get jobs which earn very low salaries and are risky jobs,” he said.

2 comments:

Anonymous
said...

Title of article should be '' Qatar needs 100 000 cambodian slaves '' because they will be treated that way when they get there... i have read many articles about migrant workers to qatar and saudi-- who were treated like they are sub-human by the muzzies , and they even had passports confiscated upon arriving to the country etc....why don't they go recruit the muzzy refugees in Nauru ... they worship same god , should have no problem assimilated in they qatar culture.

Please Khmer don't go to be slave at Muslim state ,that a dangerous place ever,if some get a trouble no body can't help specially women ,house keeping that dangerous job some others kind you can kill easily ,they are very strong religious in the world around there,they stone or by sword ,they will make justice with tourist who visit there if someone have a mistake ,this is my news to share to my love khmer people thank

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